City crews removed the speed bumps on Northeast Wistaria Drive in July because they had become rough.
But during the three weeks that the safety devices were missing from the street, a serious accident happened near the intersection of Wistaria and 42nd Avenue, angering residents who questioned the delay in replacing them.
The city originally installed the Wistaria speed bumps on October 15, 2011, the last day of that year’s paving season. But weather conditions weren’t ideal and the asphalt began to come loose from the edges. The city made temporary fixes, but decided the four bumps needed replacing.
They were removed by crews on July 21. Different crews remove and replace the bumps and the work couldn’t be done the same day, said Kyle Chisek, a transportation bureau planner. They were originally scheduled to be replaced on Saturday, July 28. City officials said the bumps weren’t replaced that day because of a scheduling conflict, but didn’t respond to questions asking for more detail. That night at about 4:30am, a car with two people headed north on 42nd Avenue failed to make the left curve onto Wistaria, flew over the opposite curb and crashed head-on into a stone retaining wall.
There were no skid marks in the street and it’s likely that the speed bump at 42nd and Stanton, a block from the accident, would have slowed the car and possibly prevented or lessened the impact of the accident.
A police sergeant at the scene said the two young people, a female driver and male passenger, would likely survive, but the woman was badly injured. Air bags and side-curtain air bags likely saved their lives, but the driver’s legs were badly fractured when the front of the car crushed them.
Since the speed bumps have been installed, speeding has reduced and there have been fewer serious accidents on the street.
Despite pleas from neighbors to replace the speed bumps sooner, the city delayed another week because Fremont Fest was scheduled for Saturday, August 4 and the city didn’t want to cause massive traffic backups that day, Chisek said.
They were finally replaced on Saturday, August 11, except for the raised crosswalk at 42nd and Stanton, which was replaced the following week.